In light of #GivingTuesday this week, we want to share with you a recent story of giving back to our community.

A Halloween spread of candy, snacks and various toys awaited hundreds of pediatric patients in areas of the John’s Hopkins Children’s Center on Friday, October 30th. They came on foot, in wagons and wheelchairs or in the arms of their parents, nurses or Child Life Specialists.

The annual Halloween Parade provides young inpatients the opportunity to visit sites such as the Great Room, the library and main lobby for treats donated by numerous hospital departments and corporate sponsors. Members of the Direct Energy Solar team donned their best Halloween costumes and joined fellow corporate sponsors and hospital staff to decorate tables with goodies and treats so the kids could enjoy their very own trick-or-treating experience. The parade of costumed patients was led by Child Life, a group of specialists that works closely with the children by providing emotional support and help explain and prepare them for medical procedures.

“This is as much fun for the volunteers and sponsors as it is for the kids,” said Lindsey Williams, Events & Community Marketing Manager, who dressed as a ballerina. “It’s opportunities like this that make working for a company like Direct Energy Solar so great—we really care about the local communities we service.”

Direct Energy Solar employees filled bags with Halloween treats.

The mission of Direct Energy Solar has been to harness our expertise to make a difference in people’s lives. By partnering with Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, we are expanding on this commitment by helping improve the lives of children throughout the communities where our valued customers live.

On October, 1, 2015, Direct Energy’s family of brands broadened their partnership with Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals through both charitable support and employee volunteering activities aimed at improving the lives of children in the communities where we do business and where we live. Building on this great work, through the month of October, we encouraged every employee to get active by walking, running, biking or swimming and for every mile, Direct Energy donated .50 cents through the DE in Motion campaign. We’re pleased to say we collectively raised $150,000 for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals.

As a proud partner of Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, we will continue to support research and training, purchase equipment, and pay for uncompensated care—all to save an improve the lives of as many children as possible.

Founded in 1912 as the children’s hospital at Johns Hopkins, the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center offers one of the most comprehensive pediatric medical programs in the country, with more than 92,000 patient visits and nearly 9,000 admissions each year. The Johns Hopkins Children’s Center is Maryland’s largest children’s hospital and the only state-designated Trauma Service and Burn Unit for pediatric patients. It has recognized Centers of Excellence in dozens of pediatric subspecialties, including allergy, cardiology, cystic fibrosis, gastroenterology, nephrology, neurology, neurosurgery, oncology, pulmonary, and transplant. For more information, visit www.hopkinschildrens.org.

About Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals

Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals® raises funds and awareness for 170 member hospitals that provide 32 million treatments each year to kids across the U.S. and Canada. Donations stay local to fund critical treatments and healthcare services, pediatric medical equipment and charitable care. Since 1983, Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals has raised more than $5 billion, most of it $1 at a time through the charity’s Miracle Balloon icon. Its various fundraising partners and programs support the nonprofit’s mission to save and improve the lives of as many children as possible. Find out why children’s hospitals need community support, identify your member hospital and learn how you can Put Your Money Where the Miracles Are, at CMNHospitals.org and facebook.com/CMNHospitals.

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